1. Scottish Invasive Species Initiative - Project Manager
Callum Sinclair
Scottish Invasive Species Initiative - Project Manager
Scottish Natural Heritage

2. Scottish Invasive Species Initiative (SISI)
4 year project ( )
Working at a local level with partners and volunteers to establish community-based strategic invasive non-native species management
Engaging people with their local river environment

3. Our partners & funders
National Lottery Heritage Fund (£1.59M), Scottish Natural Heritage (£500k), in-kind support (£1.25M).
10 Fishery trusts/boards and the University of Aberdeen

4. Our project area Our team
29,500km2 northern Scotland (Wales = 20,735km2)
Our team
Project Manager
Volunteer & Communications Officer
3 full time & 2 seasonal Project Officers
Administrative support, Fishery Trust staff time

5. The SISI project; Mink control project Plant control project
Education & awareness

6. Core theme – Volunteers!

7. Year 1 - Mink control project
241 mink rafts
144 mink traps
385 units in the field
195 volunteers
10,384 volunteer hours
71 mink despatched

8. Year 1 - Plant control project
342 volunteers
5,849 volunteer hours
Significant plant control work undertaken
Being quantified by:
Area / length
Volunteer / contractor effort
Chemical volume use

9. Year 1 - Our volunteers SISI totals Training 537 individual volunteers
16,233 volunteer hours = 11 fte staff
(full time equivalent)
Volunteer through website or
41 pesticide qualifications
5 first aid qualifications
1 brushcutter training
94 informal training activities

10. Who are they? – the groups
APEX
University Conservation Society
Corporate groups
Community payback
Conservation / wildlife groups
Land managers / farmers
Sheep….

11. Who are they? – the (registered) individuals
76% male
5% have a disability
0 from an ethnic minority
63% work full time or student 8% work part time 15% don’t work (retired or unemployed)
Based on 73 equality & diversity forms

12. Why are they doing it?

13. How did they find us?

14. Students and schools 43 groups (school / college / university)
1,143 pupils
6 Angling development sessions
108 pupils

15. Raising awareness 43 talks to groups (including outdoor visits)
18 events / shows
1 biodiversity event (public event)

16. It’s not really about the numbers…..but they are important!

17. www.invasivespecies.scot sisi@nature.scot Callum Sinclair
Image credits; NNSS, CABI Invasives, Ryzhkov Sergey CC BY-SA 4.0,